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ABSTRACT The plenary theme at the 2008 annual conference of The Wildlife Society was, 'Thriving within limits: toward a scenario of hope.' Wildlife professionals are still grappling with how wildlife management relates to sustainability as global limits, especially energy, become more obvious in affecting resource management. 'Sustainability' as used in this paper is derived from the commonly cited, Brundtland Report definition of sustainable development as, '...development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.' Further, it is activity that simultaneously addresses the interlinked aspects of economy, environment, and social well-being. To be effective in the future, natural resources agencies and organizations (NGOs) will be compelled to 1) reduce energy use by increasing efficiency of unavoidable uses and reducing optional energy uses; 2) anticipate how energy costs will affect resource use by various stakeholders; and 3) mitigate climate change by reducing combustion processes and thereby greenhouse gases. Because of their fundamental missions, natural resource entities have a special obligation to employ exemplary conservation practices. Challenges are great, but opportunities are significant. Higher fuel costs will constrain some management practices, but may limit further development of more rural and underdeveloped lands, thereby reducing habitat fragmentation and often wildlife damage complaints. Will energy costs promote smaller vehicles, reduction of some management practices, greater focus on recreational areas closer to population centers, consolidation of offices with other entities, and more video-conferencing of meetings? Will wildlife management be effectively integrated into landscapes where energy crops are produced along with food and where 'life-cycle analysis' measures the full ecological footprint of land management? Agencies and NGOs can partner with stakeholders to design landscape use that is more sustainable (less pollution, conserving of energy and soil, more biologically diverse), provides better connections to nature, and enhances overall resource conservation. Educational institutions have a critical role because they are instrumental in preparing future resource managers. © 2014 The Wildlife Society. © 2014 The Wildlife Society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

National Wildlife Refuge System policies reference both historical condition and naturalness, but these concepts may not be valid management goals in a world with rapid climate change. Currently, within the refuge system, managers and biologists can individually decide whether management actions to maintain historical condition (retrospective) or actions to promote and enhance future condition (prospective) are appropriate. In February 2008, we surveyed 203 refuge system managers and biologists (via email) about climate change and management strategies to facilitate adaptation to climate change. Our goal was to explore factors that influence preference for retrospective or prospective strategies. Most managers and biologists (76%) believe that climate change has already influenced their refuge, but land-use change and invasive species were considered more important landscape drivers. We did not find evidence that refuge purpose or inclusion of climate change in planning documents influenced individual preferences about strategies to facilitate adaptation. However, managers and biologists who conceptualize climate change as anthropogenic in origin were more likely to prefer retrospective strategies. Written responses indicate that managers and biologists prefer historical condition, but believe that retrospective strategies will be costly or impossible. Written comments also indicate that managers and biologists prefer strategies that allow species to adapt naturally and without intervention. We conclude that land management agencies need to provide the rationale for how climate change should be conceptualized in the short and long terms. Explicitly addressing conservation values may help to refine agency priorities in a rapidly changing world and to build the consensus necessary to strategically coordinate management across individual units in conservation reserves. © 2012 The Wildlife Society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]